The Latest: Court hearing on Virginia execution is canceled

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The latest on the planned execution of a convicted serial killer in Virginia (all times local):

8:15 p.m.

A scheduled court hearing on a Virginia inmate's challenge of the state's use of lethal injection drugs from Texas has been canceled.

U.S. District Court Judge Anthony Trenga had scheduled a hearing for 2 p.m. Thursday in Alexandria after Alfredo Prieto's attorneys asked the court to halt his execution until officials disclose more information about the drugs they plan to use.

But the hearing was canceled late Wednesday after Trenga approved the state's request to transfer the case to Richmond.

A temporary restraining order granted Wednesday that blocks the state from carrying out the execution remains in place. The state had been planning to give Prieto a lethal injection at 9 p.m. on Thursday.

As of Wednesday evening, no judge had been assigned in Richmond and no hearings had been scheduled.

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2:45 p.m.

A federal judge has scheduled a hearing to consider a Virginia inmate's challenge to his execution hours before he is set to be put to death.

U.S. District Court Judge Anthony Trenga granted a temporary restraining order against the state on Wednesday and set a hearing for 2 p.m. Thursday.

The state has been planning to execute Alfredo Prieto at 9 p.m. Thursday. Prieto's attorney has asked the court to halt the execution until officials disclose the supplier of the pentobarbital they plan to use.

Prieto's attorneys also want tests confirming the drug's sterility and potency and documents showing that the drugs were properly handled, transported and stored.

Virginia received the drugs from Texas.

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11:45 a.m.

The manufacturer of one of the drugs that Virginia officials plan to use to execute a death row inmate this week says it demanded that the state return the drugs when it learned of their intended use.

Documents obtained by The Associated Press through a Freedom of Information Act request show that Virginia plans to use rocuronium bromide manufactured by Mylan to execute Alfredo Prieto on Thursday. It's one of three drugs the state plans to use in the 49-year-old's execution.

A Mylan spokeswoman said Wednesday that Virginia purchased the drugs from a wholesaler. She said the company sent several letters to Virginia officials when learned about the drug's possible use and then demanded that the state return the product when it received no response.

A Department of Corrections spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

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11:40 a.m.

Attorneys for a death row inmate in Virginia are seeking to halt his execution by challenging the state's use of lethal injection drugs obtained from Texas.

Virginia plans to execute Alfredo Prieto at 9 p.m. Thursday. The 49-year-old was on death row in California for raping and murdering a 15-year-old girl when DNA evidence linked him to the 1988 slaying of a young couple in Virginia.

Prieto's attorney filed a lawsuit Wednesday asking the U.S. District Court in Virginia to block the execution until officials disclose the supplier of the pentobarbital they plan to use. Prison officials in Texas do not have to disclose where they get execution drugs and Prieto's attorneys say they haven't gotten that information from Virginia.

They say the state risks carrying out a cruel and painful execution.

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10:20 a.m.

Attorneys are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the execution of a convicted serial killer in Virginia who claims that he's intellectually disabled.

Prieto was on death row in California for raping and murdering a 15-year-old girl when DNA evidence linked him to the 1988 slaying of a young couple in Virginia.

Federal Public Defender Hilary Potashner in California asked the high court Tuesday to stay Prieto's execution so that he can continue to fight his death sentence in California on the grounds that he's intellectually disabled. Prieto's attorneys in Virginia have also asked the court to block the execution.